Field of the Invention
The present application relates to a cleaning device for cleaning a scope, laparoscope, or microscope used in surgery or other medical procedures and a method of using the device during surgical or other medical procedures. The present application further relates to a cleaning kit for cleaning a trocar and a scope, laparoscope, or microscope, used in surgery or other medical procedures, and a method of using the kit during surgical or other medical procedures.
The following patents and patent publications are hereby incorporated by reference: U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2012/0184897, having the title “INTEGRATED SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR MAINTENANCE AND MANAGEMENT OF AN INTRA-ABDOMINAL GAS ENVIRONMENT DURING LAPAROSCOPIC SURGERY,” published Jul. 19, 2012; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2012/0197084, having the title “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR OPTIMIZING AND MAINTAINING VISUALIZATION OF A SURGICAL FIELD DURING THE USE OF SURGICAL SCOPES,” published Aug. 2, 2012; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2013/0060086, having the title “IMAGING SENSOR PROVIDING IMPROVED VISUALIZATION FOR SURGICAL SCOPES,” published on Mar. 7, 2013; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2010/0168520, having the title “VIEW OPTIMIZER AND STABILIZER FOR USE WITH SURGICAL SCOPES,” published Jul. 1, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 8,535,220, having the title “LAPAROSCOPE CLEANING SYSTEM,” issued Sep. 17, 2013; U.S. Pat. No. 4,392,485, having the title “ENDOSCOPE,” issued on Jul. 12, 1983; U.S. Pat. No. 8,152,717, entitled “DEVICE FOR WHITE BALANCING AND APPLYING AN ANTI-FOG AGENT TO MEDICAL VIDEOSCOPES PRIOR TO MEDICAL PROCEDURES,” issued on Apr. 10, 2012; U.S. Pat. No. 7,803,109, entitled “METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PROTECTING THE DISTAL LENS OF ENDOSCOPES,” issued on Sep. 28, 2010; U.S. Pat. No. 7,311,660, entitled “METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR HEATING AND APPLYING WARM ANTIFOG SOLUTION TO ENDOSCOPES AS WELL AS A DISTAL LENS PROTECTOR,” issued on Dec. 25, 2007; U.S. Pat. No. 7,080,641, entitled “METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR HEATING STERILE SOLUTIONS DURING MEDICAL PROCEDURES,” issued on Jul. 25, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 8,870,752, entitled “MEDICAL DEVICE SHEATH,” issued on Oct. 28, 2014; U.S. Pat. No. 8,727,969, entitled “ENDOSCOPE,” issued on May 20, 2014; U.S. Pat. No. 8,696,552, entitled “SELF-CONTAINED STERILIZABLE SURGICAL SYSTEM,” issued on Apr. 15, 2014; U.S. Pat. No. 8,540,745, entitled “BALLOON DISSECTOR WITH CANNULA,” issued on Sep. 24, 2013; U.S. Pat. No. 8,517,918, entitled “OPTICAL TROCAR WITH SCOPE HOLDING ASSEMBLY,” issued on Aug. 27, 2013; U.S. Pat. No. 8,467,589, entitled “HYBRID REGISTRATION METHOD,” issued on Jun. 18, 2013; U.S. Pat. No. 8,454,645, entitled “BALLOON DISSECTOR WITH CANNULA,” issued on Jun. 4, 2013; U.S. Pat. No. 8,452,068, entitled “HYBRID REGISTRATION METHOD,” issued on May 28, 2013; U.S. Pat. No. 7,955,330, entitled “MULTI-PORT SIDE-FIRE COAGULATOR,” issued Jun. 7, 2011; and U.S. Pat. No. 7,927,330, entitled “MULTI-PORT SIDE-FIRE COAGULATOR,” issued Apr. 19, 2011.
During minimally invasive surgeries, such as laparoscopic surgery, trocars are used to permit access into a patient's body. Trocars are medical devices or instruments that comprise hollow tubes or hollow portions. During surgery, such as laparoscopic surgery, a trocar may be inserted through an incision into a patient's body, such as into the abdominal or pelvic cavity of a patient. The trocar acts as a passageway for other surgical tools or devices, such as scopes, laparoscopes, microscopes, knives, graspers, scissors, staplers, and more, to enter the body for use during surgery.
During such surgical procedures, the lenses of viewing devices inserted into the body through the trocar, such as scopes, laparoscopes and/or microscopes, may become clouded, or the view therethrough may become partially or completely obscured. The view can be obscured, either partially or completely, if the lenses are smeared with bodily fluids or the like, or if the lenses become clouded or fogged over due to the humidity within the body of the patient. In addition, the interior of the trocars should also be kept clean.
An object of the present application may be to provide a cleaning device for a trocar and surgical scopes, which cleaning device may be utilized during surgery. The cleaning device also may be used to defog lenses or optics of a surgical scope.